Fans enjoy Coachella at dusk. (2007/File Photo)
I’ve spent a lot of time over the last few weeks writing about other artists I think will be on the Coachella 2013 lineup and collecting suggestions from readers.
Please bear with this post–this is all about some artists I want to see on the lineup for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival April 12-14 and April 19-21. I have no reason to believe any of them will ever be on the lineup again, but all have played in the past. (If you want real, founded predictions and suggestions for Coachella 2013, check out the Coachellaology tag or scroll to the bottom of the entry for all of the updates.)
The Gaslight Anthem at the 2009 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. (2009/File Photo)
The Gaslight Anthem
One of my favorite albums of 2012 was The Gaslight Anthem’s “Handwritten” and I think one of the best albums of the last 10 years is the band’s amazing 2008 release, “The ’59 Sound.”
On-site interviews at Coachella are usually hectic and hurried, but when The Gaslight Anthem played in 2009, I had a wonderful time talking with Brian Fallon and Alex Levine about all things East Coast, New Jersey and the Bouncing Souls and then they went and just rocked my face off on the Outdoor Theatre stage. I’m really hopeful that 2013 is the year they return.
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings perform in 2010. (2010/File Photo)
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings are the greatest live performers I have ever seen. I love their music–the soul, the passion, the horns!
Jones is such a dynamic frontwoman, I want more people to see her. The last time the band played Coachella, with Riverside native Gabe Roth on the bass, I might add, was in 2008.
Datarock
I remember seeing the guys in Datarock at Coachella 2008 all weekend long in their track suits. I wasn’t expecting to be walking by the Gobi Tent and suddenly find myself in an electro-rock dance party. It was one of those magical Coachella moments where you find yourself falling in love with a new band.
The Avett Brothers perform at Pechanga Resort and Casino in 2011. (2011/File Photo)
The Avett Brothers
The Avett Brothers are amazing. They did both Coachella and Stagecoach in 2010, after releasing “I and Love and You” the year before. They’re one of the few artists to do both festivals (other artists with that claim include Dwight Yoakam, Phosphorescent and Willie Nelson) and they released their latest album, “The Carpenter,” in 2012.
Neon Trees at Coachella 2011. (2011/File Photo)
Neon Trees
On the final night of Coachella 2011, Kanye West wasn’t the top artist on my mind. (Update: Thanks to Matt Oates for pointing out I needed to be clearer on that previous sentence. I chalk it up to late nights and brain melt.) I was in a tent watching the members of Neon Trees pour their hearts onto the stage to an appreciative audience.
A little more than a year after they released debut “Habits,” Murrieta natives Tyler Glenn and Chris Allen were on stage at a festival both had gone to back when they were just music fans and didn’t have platinum-selling singles.
It was so neat watching Glenn, Allen, drummer Elaine Bradley and bassist Branden Campbell get ready for the show, a year after I did my first interview with all of them in a hotel lobby in Austin, Texas for South By Southwest.
Seeing this band that I had followed since they were playing the now-defunct Showcase Theater in Corona on stage at Coachella was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had being the music reporter at the P-E. Now, as more people have recognized the talent of this hard-working band, I want to see them there again.
However, they’re touring with Maroon 5 this spring and come to Staples Center a little less than a month before Coachella, so I think I will have to keep them on my 2014 Coachella wish list.
And while I’m mentioning some local artists, I’d love to see The BellRays, The New Division, Summer Twins and Naive Thieves on the lineup this year. I think all four would do really well with different crowds at Coachella.
I’ve covered the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach Country Music Festival since 2007. All of the Coachella prediction posts here are tagged with Coachellaology.
Previous Coachella 2013 picks and ponderings from the Audio File and readers:
Jan. 15, 2013: Muse likely out, but is Biffy Clyro in?
Jan. 15, 2013: Big Boi, Spiritualized, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Paul Simon
Jan. 14, 2013: Animal Collective, Dan Deacon, OMD
Jan. 13, 2013: The Killers and Red Hot Chili Peppers
Jan. 11, 2013: Deer Tick, Middle Brother, Deftones, Geographer, Atoms for Peace, Justin Timberlake
Jan. 10, 2013: Major Lazer, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Haim
Jan. 10, 2013: Infected Mushroom, Dr. Dog, Frank Turner, Dropkick Murphys
Jan. 8, 2013: When will the Coachella lineup be announced?
Jan. 7, 2013: Fugazi, Oingo Boingo
Jan. 5, 2013: Sound City Players
Dec. 31, 2012: Alex Clare, Lucero, Alabama Shakes, Beach House
Dec. 28, 2012: Hot Chip, Warpaint, Father John Misty, Cloud Nothings
Dec. 26, 2012: Muse, No Doubt and Alt-J
Dec. 20, 2012: Aesop Rock
Dec. 19, 2012: Daft Punk, The Rolling Stones, Phoenix, Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Dec. 14, 2012: The Rolling Stones
Dec. 12, 2012: Airborne Toxic Event
Nov. 30, 2012: Bjork
Nov. 28, 2012: Nick Cave, Tegan and Sara, Converge
Nov. 14, 2012: Sigur Ros, Pearl Jam
Nov. 9, 2012: Paul Kalkbrenner, Kill the Noise
Nov. 9, 2012: Passion Pit, Nine Inch Nails/How to Destroy Angels, Queens of the Stone Age, Run DMC, Rocket from the Crypt
Nov. 5, 2012: The Stone Roses, Daft Punk, Eminem, Watch the Throne, Depeche Mode
Oct. 19, 2012: Mumford & Sons, Deadmau5, Local Natives, Blur
Want more Coachella goodness? I tag all of my Coachella prediction posts Coachellaology. The iGuide also has a Coachella section that has interviews, articles, photos from previous years and more. Consequence of Sound also has an excellent running tally of Coachella possibilities and confirmations. You can email me at vfranko@pe.com.